Construction migrants from ‘developing’ countries in ‘developed’ hosts

Abstract

The aim of this study was to explore the experiences of migrant workers from developing countries when working in a more developed host country. Construction workers from developing countries that migrate to developed countries should benefit from remittances, savings, new skills and international contacts. In terms of their health and safety (HaS), they should also benefit from more advanced HaS regulations and ways of working. Arguably, such migrant workers (from developing countries in developed countries) should receive even more health and safety support than local workers, as they have to quickly adapt to new ways of working, systems, rules, regulations and policies. This chapter draws upon ethnographic research undertaken within the United Kingdom (UK) with migrant workers from lower-income countries in Eastern Europe that included Romania, Bulgaria and Croatia. The findings suggest that while migrant workers from lower-income countries received certain HaS benefits, they were also at risk of exploitation risks in terms of being paid less than the local workers; accidents due to arriving without adequate training or competency checks; precarious employment arrangements; extra demands and restrictions on travel home if they were bilingual; and gaining acceptance within the workforce due to inadequate communication strategies. Most construction migrant worker HaS research has focused on the physical accident risks, but this chapter also draws attention to the mental health risks that can be associated with these exploitations.